It would be one thing to be disdained if he really couldn’t win. But being disdained when he was confident he could defeat his opponent? That pissed Feng Hao off to no end. To make matters worse, the one looking down on him was a Mage.
As a top-tier Assassin player, there was no way Feng Hao was going to swallow this insult!
"Don’t mind that I’m only level thirty. Beating a few Fourth-rank Mages is still a piece of cake for me," Feng Hao said, his voice filled with anger. "So cut the nonsense. Just tell me, do you dare to spar or not?"
Bai Yin’s brow furrowed. Slightly annoyed, her gaze filled with aversion. "I can tell your strength from your badge. Frankly, a third-rank, five-star isn’t fit to fight me. If you really want to spar, you should find someone closer to your own level."
"Er..." Feng Hao glanced down at his badge and was instantly speechless. ’Goddammit. I was just trying to save a little money by not showing off, but I never thought this girl would use it as an excuse to look down on me.’
’If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve just flashed a nine-star badge instead of hiding my strength.’
Seeing Feng Hao at a loss for words, the corners of Bai Yin’s lips curved into a playful smirk. She gave Houhuiyao a graceful nod and drifted away.
"Goodbye, Senior Sister! Let’s team up sometime!" Houhuiyao watched her leave, still wanting more. He was practically drooling.
Feng Hao irritably smacked Houhuiyao on the back of the head, his face ashen. "Can you have some goddamn self-respect? Once I’m out of the Monster Simulator, I’m going to teach her a lesson no matter what."
"Brother Feng, I’m not trying to criticize you, but why do you have to make things difficult for Bai Yin?" Houhuiyao muttered.
"You don’t know shit. This is about the honor of an Assassin. There’s no way I’m letting this go," Feng Hao said through gritted teeth with a cold snort.
"The honor of an Assassin? What’s that? Can you eat it?" Houhuiyao asked, confused.
"You wouldn’t understand even if I told you." Feng Hao shot him a disdainful look and turned toward Monster Simulator No. 12. "I’m done talking. I’m going into seclusion for a month. Go do whatever you want."
"Okay, Brother Feng, don’t you worry. I’ll help you keep an eye on Senior Sister Bai Yin’s movements," Houhuiyao declared righteously.
Feng Hao, who had just reached the pod entrance, felt his face darken. He shot a glare back at him, then resolutely stepped into the Monster Simulator.
The moment the pod door closed, Houhuiyao’s expression changed completely, and he excitedly ran off in pursuit of Bai Yin.
...
Inside the Monster Simulator, blue skies, white clouds, flowers, grass, and a small creek filled the landscape. The scene, simulated by a Demon Pattern Array, was incredibly realistic, creating a truly immersive experience. It felt significantly more high-end than the Monster Simulator at Rongcheng Academy.
He inserted his access card into the slot, and a control panel quickly popped up, displaying information on a wide variety of magical beasts.
’This really is an advanced simulator. It even has sixth and seventh-rank beasts. Fifty thousand Magic Crystals a day isn’t a bad deal at all.’ Feng Hao nodded in satisfaction. He casually browsed a few pages of the monster list, then smirked. "Let’s start with one hundred fourth-rank Iron Armor Beasts for a warm-up."
With that, he skillfully operated the control panel, selecting to summon one hundred fourth-rank Iron Armor Beasts.
The next moment, the once-empty simulated landscape was suddenly filled with a horde of massive, fourth-rank Iron Armor Beasts. Bovine roars echoed throughout the area.
"Haha, time to get started!"
Holding his Su Mu Daggers, one in a forward grip and one in reverse, Feng Hao immediately entered a combat stance. After swallowing a few Qi Recovery Pills, he officially activated his new skill: [Shadow Sneak].
Upon activation, a strange energy enveloped him. His body instantly became ethereal and transparent before vanishing completely. It was just like turning invisible. Most importantly, none of his movements made a single sound.
Iron Armor Beasts were herbivores with low aggression, and the simulated versions were especially docile.
His Magic Power began to drain steadily while in [Shadow Sneak], but with Qi Recovery Pills on hand, the consumption was negligible.
Feng Hao quickly snuck up behind an Iron Armor Beast and activated [Moon Pierce]. As he thrust his Su Mu Dagger forward, it shot out a small, crescent-shaped blast of energy. It was so fast it could almost rival a light bullet from a Magic Energy Gun. The effect of the [Swift] Demon Pattern was truly powerful.
BANG!
The moment [Moon Pierce] landed, the effect of [Shadow Sneak] immediately vanished. At the same time, the fourth-rank Iron Armor Beast’s Qi Blood dropped by half.
The enraged Iron Armor Beast roared, spun around, and charged recklessly toward Feng Hao.
’Attacking breaks the effect, just as I thought. It makes sense. If I could stay invisible forever, wouldn’t I be invincible?’ Feng Hao thought, easily dodging the beast’s charge.
As the Iron Armor Beast charged again, Feng Hao calmly reactivated [Shadow Sneak]. Although attacking broke the stealth, the good news was that the skill had no cooldown. As long as he had enough Magic Power, he could use it indefinitely.
Having lost its target, the Iron Armor Beast began to rampage, frantically trampling the grass beneath its feet.
’Huh, something seems off.’
Feng Hao suddenly froze. According to his Crystal Eye’s detection, the Iron Armor Beast’s vitality had dropped by 10 points. That was strange.
’Logically, [Dark Force Fifth Layer] deals five instances of damage. Paired with the [Instant Kill] Demon Pattern, it should only add 5 points of vitality damage. But that last strike dealt 10 points of vitality damage.’
’Could it be that the Dark Force double-damage talent also boosts the [Instant Kill] Demon Pattern?’ At this thought, Feng Hao’s heart began to race.
He was already satisfied with 5 points of vitality damage, so this was an unexpected bonus. If his theory was correct, this was terrifyingly powerful.
After all, vitality was a difficult attribute to raise. Unless you were like Xiyue Frost and had awakened a talent that boosted vitality, most people would only have a few hundred points at best.
Yet he could inflict 10 points of vitality damage with a single skill. His [Moon Wheel Dance] could inflict 20! This meant that even if his regular damage was insufficient, he could still kill his opponents through vitality damage alone!
’[Moon Pierce] is still on cooldown. I’ll test it with my other skills first.’
The more Feng Hao thought about it, the more excited he became. He snuck over again and unleashed a perfect combo of [Dark Moon Massacre] and [Moon Wheel Dance], instantly draining the Iron Armor Beast’s Qi Blood. However, because it still had vitality, the beast didn’t fall.
’It’s true. A total of 30 vitality points lost.’ After confirming his theory, Feng Hao couldn’t help but burst into song. "Haha, being invincible is so, so lonely! Being invincible is so, so empty..."
He finished it off with a casual blow, and the Iron Armor Beast immediately dissolved into specks of energy that glittered like stars.
’It’s a shame poisonous ingredients are so hard to find. Otherwise, if I could just concoct a few vitality-damaging poisons, even fifth and sixth-rank experts would have to kneel before me.’
It was a shame, but the effects of the [Instant Kill] Demon Pattern were already thrilling enough. Once he got his hands on some vitality-damaging poison in the future, he would be truly unstoppable.
This was an incredible, unexpected surprise for Feng Hao. It filled him with passion for the month of monster grinding that lay ahead.
’First things first, I need to max out my skill proficiencies.’
With that, humming a little tune, he charged toward the remaining ninety-nine Iron Armor Beasts. Thanks to [Shadow Sneak], it didn’t matter how loudly he sang; the beasts wouldn’t hear a thing.
...